 | Ballads of the War |  |
40
A Timely Confession
December 15th
Lord of the Judgment-arm for ever sure,
We do confess our sin that it was great,
Strong in our pride, contemptuous in debate,
We scorned the farm-bred patriarchal Boer;
We let the diamond dust and golden lure
Dim and bedazzle eyes half-blind for hate,
Dreamed war begun and ended, set the date;
And planned as if our victory were secure.
We do confess our sin that it was great,
Strong in our pride, contemptuous in debate,
We scorned the farm-bred patriarchal Boer;
We let the diamond dust and golden lure
Dim and bedazzle eyes half-blind for hate,
Dreamed war begun and ended, set the date;
And planned as if our victory were secure.
Wherefore, in mercy lest the pillars fall
Of this Heaven-ordered, this imperial realm,
Thou hast decreed that, humbled to the dust
By these veldt shepherds and their mountain wall,
We should, ere arrogant bluster overwhelm,
Learn that our God who made us great is just.
Of this Heaven-ordered, this imperial realm,
Thou hast decreed that, humbled to the dust
By these veldt shepherds and their mountain wall,
We should, ere arrogant bluster overwhelm,
Learn that our God who made us great is just.
| Ballads of the War | |